Tech Jobs Are Fueling NYC’s Economy — Here’s How To Expand Them to All New Yorkers
Today Tech:NYC, alongside our partners at the Association for a Better New York (ABNY) and Google, released a new report prepared by HR&A Advisors measuring the impact of NYC’s tech ecosystem.
The report, released almost ten years after HR&A’s seminal The New York City Tech Ecosystem study in 2013, found that tech has contributed massive economic impact and job growth in the city over the last decade. According to the report, NYC’s tech ecosystem:
Employed 369,000 people across tech and non-tech sectors in 2021, representing 7% of the city’s entire workforce;
Generated 440,000 in added multiplier jobs, creating a total $291 billion in economic output for the city, or 28% of NYC’s total economic output.
Tech is a leading driver of NYC’s economy
NYC tech is driving more economic growth across the city’s broader economy, adding 1.2 multiplier jobs for every one tech job to support 440,000 multiplier jobs. The result: the sector comprises 28% of the city’s overall economic output — twice as much as the same number in 2013.
NYC tech also offers higher wages: across all tech jobs, real wages and wage growth are both higher compared to other sectors in the economy. The average hourly wage in the tech ecosystem is $48/hour, compared to an average of $32/hour for the overall economy, and over 50% of all tech jobs pay over $40/hour.
NYC tech’s commitment to providing high-paying jobs applies to workers without a college degree: tech jobs for these workers pay an average of $30/hour, above the citywide average of $22/hour.
Tech is building new talent hubs beyond Manhattan
The number of tech jobs has continued to rise in the outer boroughs over the past decade, particularly in Brooklyn, which has seen a 42% rate of growth, adding 14,000 jobs spurred largely by investments in the Brooklyn Navy Yard and the Brooklyn Tech Triangle.
While tech job growth is slower in other outer boroughs, roughly one-third of all NYC tech workers live in Queens, the Bronx, and Staten Island, demonstrating how tech’s economic impact is spread across the city.
Tech must expand its commitment to cultivating a diverse workforce
NYC tech has seen increases in nonwhite and female representation, but it is not yet reflective of the city’s overall racial and gender diversity. Black and Latino/a New Yorkers represent more than half of the city’s population and 35% of the workforce, but New York’s tech ecosystem is 22% Black and Latino/a.
The gap is larger in higher-paying jobs: only 9% of NYC’s 53,000 software developers are Black and/or Latino/a.
Recommendations
Our report includes several recommendations for both city government and industry partners to strengthen and diversify the city’s tech sector, including:
Expanding CS4All with a focus on developing quality K-12 computer science teachers in underserved schools, as well as continued investment in CUNY 2X Tech with a focus on racial and gender equity.
Scaling equity-driven workforce programs, particularly those outside of Manhattan and those focused on training software developers.
Developing stronger pipelines with historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) to bring students back to New York after graduation.
Investing in neighborhood-based tech infrastructure in the outer boroughs, leveraging existing assets such as libraries and community centers.
Supporting neighborhood-based quality of life initiatives to enable tech workers to work flexibly and remotely without leaving NYC.
